Modern wireless communication networks have existed in some form for decades. Every so often, new technology and regulatory or commercial developments provide an impetus for progress in the wireless communication field. The earliest commercial (“first generation” or “1G”) cellular systems used analog voice channels and digital controls, and had very limited data communication capabilities. These were replaced by “second generation” or “2G” systems that used digital radio channels for both voice and control. Recently, “third generation (3G)” communication systems, including CDMA-2000 systems, became available. CDMA is one common form of digital communication, and stands for Code Division Multiple Access. The term CDMA-2000 itself is a registered trademark of the Telecommunications Industry Association. CDMA-2000 combines multiple radio channel communication with advanced data packet transmission protocols to provide high-speed data services over existing networks.
Wireless telephone use has expanded significantly in recent years, with an accompanying increase in the number of subscribers per square mile and the number of subscribers simultaneously using the available bandwidth in a given area. As a result, modern wireless networks are divided into geographical zones, called cells (hence the term “cellular”), which allow a plurality of subscribers to share the services of a radio tower and a frequency within each cell. Accordingly, it is a goal of communication providers to increase the capacity and performance of the available cellular communication infrastructure. This patent application provides systems and methods that are directed to such improvements.